Carbonization of coal



CARBONIZATION 0F COAL June 3, 1924.:

Filed June 11 1923 :5 Sheets-Sheet 1!,

STEWART ROY ILLINGWOR'IH By his Attorneys,

June 3, s R. ILLINGWORTH CARBONIZATION COAL Filed June 11. 1923 3 Sheets-Sheet MENTOR S'I'EQART ROY ILLMIOMH,

By 'his Attorneys,

Bum WlRA- June a"; 1924- s; R. ILLINGWOR 'TH CARBONIZATION 0F: COAL v Filed June 1i 192s a sheets-sneer, 5

INVENTOR STEWART ROY ILLINGWORTH,

By his Attorneys,

Patented June 3, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

STEWART ROY ILLINGWORTH, OI BRYN' FEDWEN', RA DYRfWALES, ASSIGNOR T IL- I LINGWORTH CAEBONIZATION COMPANY, LIMITED, OF MANCHESTER, ENG-LAND.

CARBONIZATION OF COAL.

Application filed June 11, 11128. semi 80.644349.

To all whom it may concern:

B'e-itlknown that I, STEWART RoY ILLING- WORTH, a subject of the King of Great Britain,residing at Bryn Fedwen, Radyr, Glamorganshire, Wales, have invented new and useful Improvements in the Carbomzationof Goal, of which the following is a specification- ;This invention relates to the formation of briquettes by the carbonization of coal and is particularly ap licable to coals which have been subjecte to a preliminary treatment as described in thePatentNo. 1422269 and in the Patent 1,462,576 and to blended.

the mouldsfi into a retort. It is found that the formation of a shell on the briquette occurs in about one fifth of the whole time required for the complete conversion of the coal into smokeless fuel, so that the retort or part of the retort containing the. moulds should be about one quarter the size of the second retort or other part of the same retort into which the edpartially formed bri- ,quettes are discharg other retort orthat part of the first retort into-which the briquettes are discharged is maintained at a temperature of-900 to 1000' C. at the delivery or lower end whilstgithe end communicating with the other retort is maintained at about 600 C.

' The accompanying drawings illustrate plant suitable for'carrying out this process. Figures 1, 1, and 1 taken together form a longitudinal section ofa carbonizing plant, Figure 1 being a continuation of the upper left hand portion of Figure 1, and Figure '1" being a continuation downward of the right hand portion of Figure 1..

Figures 2 and 2 taken together form a gure 2' being a downward continuation of Figure 2.

10- is a horizontal mufiie retort in which are inountedpairs of sprocket wheels 11 and transverse section of the plant, Fl

12 over 'which'pass two endless chains 13, rollers 131 bein provided to assist in the running of the c ains which pass thereover. 1

On the chains 13 are mounted trays 14 which are divided by partitions 141 into a number of compartments forming moulds of the size which the briquettes are to have.

which coal is supplied to the moulds, and'a At one I end of the retort 10 is a hopper 15 provided with a feeding and measuring wheel 151 by scraper 152 is provided to level the top surface of the coal in the trays.

The trays 14 have flan es 142 .ontheirrear ends which overlap t e front ends of adjacent trays, sopreventing. the waste of coal. At'the end of the retort 10 rmote from the feeding apparatus 15 is a vertical retort 16 provided at its basewith a bafile plate 17.and a star wheel 18 by means of which a measured quantity of material is delivered from the furnace 16. On the rotation of the star wheel the material ,delivered falls into one or other of the cooling chambers 19 or 20 according to the position of the guide 181. The cooling chambers are provided with doors 191 and 201 through which the material is delivered. The retort 10 is heated by gas burners in horizontal passages 21 whilst the r'etort' 16 is heated by burners in vertically arranged passages 22 and at the base of the retort-16 is a plpe 23 for the admission of gas. The retort 10 is provided with inspection doors 101 and I 102 and .a main 103 through which the gaseous products are extracted. In operation the trays 1a in a... retort" 10 are caused to travel throu h it at such a I rate that the outer shell of a riquette is sufli ciently hard to prevent fracture. when the' briquette is dropped by the reversal of the trays 13 into the retort 16. It is foundthat the formation of the shell occurs about one fifth of the whole time required for complete conversion into smokeless fuel,

therefore, the retort 16 is of suflicient size to take four times as great a charge as the Y riven at other of the cooling vessels 19. or 20. In the manufacture of smokeless fuel the heat of the two retorts 10 and 16 is from 500. to

600 C. but in the manufacture of metallurgical coke in which a large output of liquid by-products isrequired the retort 10 is maintained at about 500 to 600 C. whilst the top of the retort 16 is maintained at 600 C. and the bottom at 900 to 1000 C. In this case the retort 16 must be of a capacity from? to 8 times that of the furnace 10.

The artia-Ily formed briquettes are continuous y delivered to the retort 16 bythe conveyor 13 and the star wheel or valve 18 is continuously revolved.

.The apparatus herein shown and described is not herein claimed, such subjectmatter being claimed in my copending application No. 674,760, filed June 11, 1923 which shows and describes the apparatus more in detail.

The retorts 10 and 16 and the cooling chambers 19 and 20 may be jacketed and may be used for heating as given off by the coals which may be led to the pipe 23 from which it passes to the retort 16 and then to the retort 10.

It will be observed that the coal while being fed through the retort 10 is divided into discrete masses in the molds 14 and that these masses are continuously passed through a zone maintained at such a temperature that the coal is partially carbonized or partially coked, a hard "shell being formed around each mass and that these shell covered masses are then passed into a zone of-larger dimensions than that first 'mentioned in the retort 16 and which is 1. In the carbonization of coal, arranging coal in discrete masses, passing these masses throu h a zone maintained at suchtempera-';

ture t at a shell of partially coked coal is I formed around each mass, then :p'assing'these neeepee artially coked massesintoa zone of larger dimensions than that first mentioned, and

.whichis heated to a coking temperature,

and retainingthe briquettes formed in the first zone in said second zone until the coking operation is finished.

2. In the carbonization of coal, arranging coal in discrete masses, passing these masses ation is finished.

3. In the carbonization of coal, continu-' ously forming a series of discretemasses of coal, passing these masses through a zone maintained at such temperature that a hard shell is formed around each mass, then pass-' ing these shell surrounded masses to an other zone of larger dimensions than the first and which is maintained at a coking temperature and retaining the bri uettes formed in the first zone in said secon until the cokin operation is finished.-

4. In the car onization of coal, to obtain smokeless fuel, the process herein described which consists in arranging coalin discrete masses, passing these masses into a zone maintained at such temperature that a shell of partially coked coal is formed around each mass, then passing these partially coked masses into a zone of larger dimensions than that first mentioned and which is heated to a coking temperature and retaining the briquette formed in the first zone in said second zone fora longer period than they were retained in the first zone and until the masses are converted into smokeless fuel.

5. In the carbonization of coal, arrangin g coal in discrete masses, passing them throng a zone maintained at 500 to 600 C. at such rate that a shell of partiallycoked coal is formed around-each masathen passing these partially coked masses into a zone of zone higher temperature and retaining them there-in until they are coked throughout.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name this twenty-ninth day of May 1923.

STEWART ROY ILLINGWoRTH; 

